I have already the Model Samples, and now I want to get and the Model Cycles to enrich my sonic pallet. The problem is that I want to be able to record chords using the Model Cycles, but the chord Track in the Model Cycles it sounds like a paraphonic chord to my ears, and I have watched so far tones of Model Cycle’s videos on youtube. I don’t know if the term paraphonic is the right description because we’re talking about Fm and not analogue synthesis here, but I guess you will get a clue of what I’m trying to tell.
So, my main question is if the chord track in the Model Cycles sounds as good like as a real Fm chord. If the chord track is paraphonic and it doesn’t sound good then I should get the Digitone, which obviously is a better Fm synth.
Thanks a lot man. Now, I understand the main difference between the Digitone and the Model Cycles. I think I will get the Digitone, it is a tough decision because the Model Cycles has the 2 extra tracks and a usb audio interface, and its price is better…
The chord machine is more of a wavetable stab chord. It is paraphonic in the way you can’t individually articulate the notes but the knob that seamlessly sweeps through different inversions is a really neat idea. If you dont yet have a poly the chord mode doesn’t act like a poly synth though and you probably will want something that let’s you play each note via keys.
Yes, the Cycles has 2 extra tracks, but only 6 voices in total while the Digitone has 8 voices in total.
USB capabilities are the same with the bonus that Digitone is also supported by Overbridge.
In general the Digitone is much more versatile where you can decide yourself how a patch is structured (how FM operators are linked together etc.pp.). The Cycles on the other hand gives you only a few meta controls for each machine hiding all the FM functionality itself.
The digitone got the usb interface features similar to the model cycles in the recent update. I have both and I think I have more fun with the model:cycles. I feel like I don’t really have to think about the synthesis system. I find I can predict the changes on the model cycles really easily, at least on the tone, kick, and snare machines. The model:cycles is great when I come home from work and just want to get a bit of aggression out. The digitone requires a bit more thought, and the amount of options can be a bit overwhelming.
So, you get more instant results with the Model Cycles which offers a more pleasant experience, and personally I prefer the instant workflow of the Cycles. I would like to ask you about the sounds comparison, for example if you push the Model Cycles into its limits can you achieve the high quality sounds of the Digitone? To my ears the Digitone is one of the best digital synths, and maybe the best Fm synth in the market.
Given the fact that you have both machines, obviously you can give your opinion about the sound comparison. I understand that as an FM drum machine the Model Cycles maybe sounds even better than the Digitone, but what about the melodies?
I also have both M:C and Digitone. Until about a year ago, I was’nt really into FM Syntesis, but I gave it a shot anyway with the M:C and I liked it a lot. I actually like it so much, that soon after I got myself a Digitone and then my interest in FM synthesis exploded. What a machine !!! So although I agree the M:C is a very nice piece with a direct nice workflow, I basically use it only for FM drums, because I think the Digitone is way more versatile. But would I let the M:C go ? Probably not…
And to end the story of my relationship with FM synthesis, I recently ordered the Kodamo Essence FM. 'nough said, I guess…
I would say that the Model Cycles can very quickly get intense and distorted sounds, where the digitone is more pristine generally. The digitone can get super crunchy, and the cycles can be clean, but I feel like the harsh edge is just around the corner with the cycles, which I love.
The digitone on the other hand can be clean or harsh, but the one thing it can do that the model cycles can’t (as well) is evolving sounds. With no attack parameter on the cycles and only one lfo per track it can be hard to get slowly evolving sounds, whereas with the digitone it is easy.
On the other hand I find doing drums on the digitone to be a chore. I might just not have figured out my workflow with it. Because of this I almost always use something else with the digitone for drums.
The model cycles was my first elektron product and I have since gotten the digitakt and the digitone. It might be just that I have had it the longest but I think find the cycles to the be the most fun to sit and jam with. This is heavily dependent on what I want from my music. I rarely finish tracks these days and more just want to have something to jam on with my room mates. The cycles does that very well, I feel like the synthesis engine is simple enough I can dial in exactly what I want. The digitakt, and especially the digitone, are a bit more cerebral. it feels like you have to think about what you want to do with them more, but with that you can get extremely deep.
The one thing about the model cycles I actually miss are the extra LFO features on the digi’s. With P-Locking you can almost treat the LFO like an automation track on the digis when you can move a parameter from one value to another smoothly over a certain period of time. The cycles lacks the different play modes that makes some of that possible.
Have both and love both but that’s a hard comparison to make as they’re quite different experiences to use despite having some synthesis method commonality. There are sounds I love that I can get out of one that I can’t get out of the other and vice versa. Plus the traditional Elektron workflow compared to the knob per function approach of the model series tends to lead me to write music in slightly different ways.
‘high quality sounds’ is really subjective though, so I guess it would be a case of going through youtube videos to see if the M:C does get to that level for you.
